Seven

This essay will analyse the 1995 film 'Seven' in 6 parts. These parts are narrative structure, camerawork, mise-en-scene, sound, editing and thriller codes and conventions. It will also relate 'Seven' to the critic's theories of the thriller. The 4 main characters in the film are Detective David Mills and Detective William Somerset, the murderer they're chasing John Doe and David's wife Tracey Mills. The film consists of murders centred around the 7 deadly sins.
'Seven' has a linear narrative structure. At the beginning there is a dual narrative between David and William, because it cross-cuts between them getting ready for work in the morning. This is a contrast between David and William and it shows how different and opposite their personalities are.
The camerawork in this film reflects how the audience feel. When David and William are looking around Does flat, there are slow pans to take in the details. This creates suspense. At the end of the film when David, John and William are in the desert there are lots of shaky camera movements used when they are running and when the camera's view is from the helicopter. These are point of view shots and serve to make the audience feel involved, to break up the shots and to add variety. By the end of the film the audience realises that John Doe is a martyr. This is because he's killed to fulfill his belief in the 7 deadly sins which, in his head, is a just cause. The shots help the audience to come to this conclusion. An example of this is when there's a low angle shot showing John as in control and the sun is just behind his head which gives him almost a ring of light around his head. This is ironic because it makes John seem innocent and angelic, even though he's committed all these gruesome murders throughout the film. All through the film, when Mills is giving his opinion on the murders and he is in control, the camera looks up to him. However, the majority of the time, because Mills and Somerset are equally important, they're on the same level. Also, when Mills and Somerset are together the camera is always next to them or behind them, rather than in front of them. For example, when they're in the car, the camera would be expected to be on the windscreen or somewhere in front of the characters. However, the shots are always from the backseat of the car. The purpose of these type of shots are to make the audience feel part of their 'gang' and their conversations.
The costume, hair and make-up in the film also juxtaposes the difference between Mills and Somerset. Somerset's clothes are all neatly pressed and traditional. He wears lots of tweed and a hat. In contrast to Mills' clothes, which include a leather jacket and he has his ties already done, which connotes that he's lazy. The lighting is dark and dull, which gives an eerie atmosphere and makes the audience feel scared. The props include torches, which creates suspense. They also highlight what the detectives are looking at and relate to partial vision, but physically rather than in the narrative. Another important prop is the guns. This is also a factor that contrasts Mills' and Somerset's personalities. Somerset's gun is more like an old-fashioned revolver and he doesn't really use it, however Mills has a modern gun and he uses it frequently. Tracey also expresses her views about the use of guns, which is ironic because her husband has one that he uses alot, it also foresees the ending when she gets killed.
The opening title sequence is accompanied by gritty, haunting, dirty, unnatural, cold and eerie music. This sets the tone for the film. Throughout the film there is constant traffic, arguing, sirens, alarms, barking, rain, trains and car horns. This makes the setting seem dirty, violent, polluted and depressing. About half-way through the film William is in the library and David is at home and they're both working on the same case. This is the first time that these 2 characters are on the same wavelength, because up until this point they were disagreeing about everything. This is portrayed by a sound bridge between these 2 scenes to show that there is a link between the both of them. The song that is playing is 'Air on a G-string' by Bach. This song connotes the scene as peaceful, quiet and intellectual, which contrasts to the rest of the film which is mainly thrilling and fast-paced. This piece of sound is both non-diegetic and diegetic because William is listening to it in the library but David can't hear it. It also makes the audience think about the murder investigation itself and helps them to feel involved in solving the mystery.
What is happening in the opening of the film is only clear once you've watched the film. It's a montage of scary, gory and creepy images, and it can be understood after knowing the film's narrative that it's John Doe setting up and getting ready for the murders he commits. His face isn't shown but it's purpose is to show the presence of a 'crazy' character, which is later identified as Doe. The on screen graphics are blurry, unfocused, rough and scratchy. This signifies that the film's going to be unclear and puzzling.
'Seven' illustrates G. K. Chesterton's theory of 'The Transformed City' because it has an urban setting. Northrop Frye's theory of 'The Heroic Romance' is shown when the ordinary working people like Somerset and Mills' lives are turned into the extraordinary by the murders they are investigating. John Cawelti's theory of 'The Exotic' is illustrated in 'Seven' because the 'exotic' is the 7 deadly sins and the elaborate murder scenes. W. H. Matthews' theory of 'Mazes and Labyrinths' is shown because the whole narrative is a puzzle and a maze. Pascal Bonitzer's theory of 'Partial Vision' is illustrated in 'Seven' because the audience only see some of the story. Lars Saurberg's theory of 'Concealment and Protraction' is shown through the delays in finding out key information in alot of the scenes. For example, at the end of the film, when the van delivers the box, it delays the audience from finding out what's actually in the box. Lastly, Noel Carroll's theory of 'Question and Answer' is illustrated in 'Seven' through the many questions that will go through the viewer's head when watching the film. For example, will he survive and will he kill again. Noel Carroll also says that the moral factor should be included in a thriller, which is also illustrated in 'Seven.' This is when Mills becomes the killer at the end, which leads to the important question of whether Mills is still a hero. Another example of the moral factor is John Does morals and his reasons for the killings, whether they are just or not.